Sweet!

FROM the "Stake Your Day" newsletter; A new study published in Cell Metabolism found even sitting by the window for a few hours a day can be a good way to regulate blood sugar levels, enhance metabolism function and circadian rhythm response, and generally manage Type 2 diabetes. Previous research has found sunlight is good for health, both mental and physical, which doesn’t necessarily bode well for the average North American, who spends 80% to 90% of their time indoors. However, being indoors doesn’t mean you can’t be exposed to sunlight, and the study’s authors wanted to test the effects of absorbing it just by sitting near a window for several hours a day. They recruited 13 volunteers to spend two separate 4.5-day periods in the same room, with one group exposed to sunlight through big windows, and the other sitting with the windows blocked and only exposed to artificial light. Both groups ate the same food and were monitored for the same amount of time. They both registered the same average glucose levels, but the sunlight group spent more time in the normal range. Muscle tissue samples also revealed their muscles were more effective in absorbing nutrients in response to the circadian clock the sun helped keep in rhythm. "Our findings suggest that natural daylight exposure has a positive metabolic impact on individuals with Type 2 diabetes and could support the treatment of metabolic diseases," the researchers wrote. ... This sounds like good news... But what is this "Sunlight" they speak of?